Self Improvement Information

In today’s culture the word “goal” has become a buzzword.  Many people say, “my goals is to ___”.  That is good, in the respect, they are stating what they want.  In that statement, they have substituted the word “goal” for what might, more appropriately, be called an “intention”.  If it has become such a buzzword, why is it that only 2% of the population have written, specific goals?

When I coach and work with people in business, I am always surprised that people find setting goals so hard to do.  They talk as if they will sit down and write their goals, but unless they have a business coach, who will keep them accountable, they tend to stick it in the section of their minds labeled “I will do this tomorrow”.  Why do people struggle with setting goals?

I believe, one reason is, they really don’t know how to set goals.  After gathering the information on how to set effective goals, some will still not do it.  The reason could be that many people are afraid of success.  When people hear that, they tell me they aren’t afraid of success, they are afraid of failure.  Let’s look at that statement a little closer.

As we progress through life we stumble, fall, and fail at many things.  We start this process off, early, as infants learning to walk, feed ourselves, and how to explore our environment.  When our parents tell us “no”, or we fall down, that is failing.  We all learn coping skills for the dreaded failure scenario.  Would it be safe to say most of us have a tool in our toolbox of life called “dealing with failure”?  Don’t misunderstand me, failure can be devastating if you perceive it that way, or it can be a tremendous learning experience.  It is all in perception.

Success, on the other hand, is a bit more frightening for most people.  They really don’t have a clear concise mental picture of what it would look like to succeed.  Our quest for success is often the place were we find most of our limiting beliefs.  Limited beliefs are what stops us from going where we want to go.  Limited beliefs are dis-concerning because, most often, we have no idea what those limited beliefs are until we get a mentor or a coach that can help us uncover them and hold us accountable.

Another area that trips up the goal setting individual is not taking responsibility for the people they hang around.  We are all products of our environment.  Our incomes will, often times, be very similar to the 5 people we associate out with the most.  Think about that for a moment.  Picture in your mind the 5 people that you are in contact with the most.  Are you all in the same economic bracket?

The last thing I want to propose to you is that most people are not in tune with their values.  They haven’t thought, consciously, about what they value the most or the least in their lives.  When we don’t know what our values are, it is easy to set a goal that is in direct conflict with a value we weren’t aware of.  For instances, if a person’s top value is their family and the time they spend with them, setting a goal for the next promotion or starting a business might be in direct conflict due to the increased time it will take to accomplish it.  Can you see the friction in obtaining that goal?

I have found the product called “Mind Movies” to be very helpful in developing a conscious mental picture of what you want.  Their workbook is exceptional in helping to pinpoint what we want and what we value most.  The Mind Movie is an excellent visualization tool for accomplishing the goals we have set.

I have for you, today, a 6 minute video entitled “12 Goal Setting Mistakes in 5 Minutes or Less”.  It has some very good information for you.  As Huxley said, “There is only one corner of the Universe that we can change and that is our self.”  If you gleaned some information that you feel others could use, feel free to pass it on!

Did you realize that everything you see in your physical world first started out as something in some one’s imagination?  The computer you are reading this on.  The car you drive.  The clothes you wear.  Even in the world of nature, would it make sense that all of it, including us, was first in the imagination of the divine?

One of my favorite quotes is from Albert Einstein.  He said, “Your imagination is your preview of life’s coming attractions.“ That is a powerful statement from a brilliant man with a immense imagination.  I watched a biography on the History Channel about Albert Einstein.  Early in his life, he was considered a “failure”.  He had trouble in school.  His grades were not good.  When he graduated from the University, by the skin of his teeth, his desire in life was to teach at a University.  He was considered unacceptable for a University job because he had trouble with authority figures.  In today’s world, he might have had a label pasted on him such as ADD.

Opportunity often comes dressed as failure or adversity.  In his case, he had to take a job at the Patent Office that his relative owned.  The opportunity for him was that he had time to sit on his stool and use his imagination.  He dreamed of what it would be like to race along side of a beam of light.  When he rode the street car he imagined it racing at the speed of light.  He questioned what traveling at the speed of light would do to the concept of time.  Albert Einstein is now considered one of the most well known and respected geniuses that ever roamed the planet!

What role does imagination play in our life?  Napoleon Hill says, “If you can see it, and believe it, you can achieve it.”  Our imagination resides “outside the box”.  Many of us grow up being taught that we need to stay in the “box”, which stifles the imagination.  Most of our educational systems are not structured for the child who is “outside the box”.

Our imagination will not be denied.  If we don’t take control of this precious asset, it will find a way to emerge in our lives.  It can appear as negative thoughts and scenarios in our minds.  Left to its own devices without proper management, our imagination can fall into the clutches of habitual hypnotic rhythm (see Napoleon Hill – Part 13).  It can paint a rather dismal picture for us.  Our imagination, strengthened by emotions has direct access to our subconscious mind which will set into motion the events to accomplish what our imaginations has pictured.  No questions asked. The subconscious doesn’t have a sense of right or wrong or whether you really want what you have imagined to happen in your life.

What is the harm of imagining what it would be like to race beside a beam of light?  Let’s use visualization to create the life we design.  A good visualization tool can get us on the right track until it becomes our nature to control our thoughts.  Two of the best I have found are, Mind Movies where you actually create your own mind movie to watch on your computer every day.  They give you 6 generic mind movies which you can download to try out for free.  When you purchase the Mind Movie package, the workbook that comes with your Mind Movie package walks you through the process every step of the way and digs deep into what you really want in your life.  If you prefer audio, the Relaxations for Wealth could be a good fit.

For your viewing pleasure and food for thought, I have included this 6 minute clip “The Death of the Imagination”  from the movie “Six Degrees of Separation”. Feel free to pass this blog post on to others.

I have had such a feeling of synchronicity the last few days.  When this happens to me, I feel I need to pay attention.  A lesson is presenting itself to me.  The synchronicity I keep hearing refers to “our mind’s eye”. 

I listen to and read a lot of information on self improvement every day.  In the past week, I have heard several speakers use the term, “seeing with your mind’s eye”.  One speaker said that we have our physical eyes in which we see so-called “reality” and we, also, see with our mind’s eye.  What does that conjure up in your mind when I say your mind’s eye? Do you see a big eyeball in the middle of your brain?  That would be very Halloween-ish.  I believe our mind’s eye is that space in our minds where we keep our vision for our lives.  It is for the things we desire, or habitually think about.  If you can’t see what you want in that space, you can’t have it.

I was watching a video of Bob Proctor’s called the “Paradigm Shift”.    He said we have to, “figure out what we want to do and then get rid of the monkeys in our minds.”  The monkeys being the thoughts of lack and non belief among others.  He also said we need to “create a space in our minds for what we desire.”  If we fill our mind’ eye with horrific images of what we don’t want, what do you suppose is going to happen in our lives?  What you focus on grows.

I am a fan of “Dog Whisperer” with Cesar Milan.  I love animals.  My favorite is dogs.  They can be the perfect example of unconditional love, devotion, and loyalty.  A dog doesn’t care what you look like, how much money you make, or if you’ve made mistakes in your life.  They just love you for you.

Friday night, I was burrowed in on my couch with my dog, Frank, watching Cesar.  He had invited two people to his new “Dog Psychology Center” to visit their dog he was working with.  One of the people commented that the “center” would be great when it was all finished.  Cesar said, “In my mind it is already done.”  Cesear could see the completion of his dream in his mind’s eye as if it already done.

Our mind’s eye is a place that exists in all of us and is unique to each one of us.  We choose what we fill that space with.  It can be images of failure or it can be a vision of success.  That space has a direct feed into our subconscious mind.  As John Kehoe, author of Mind Power Into the 21st Century, says, “The mandate of the subconscious is to attract circumstances and situations that match the images you have within.”

What do you see when you use your mind’s eye?  Is it clear?  Is it something that you want to actually manifest in your life?  If you are holding a picture of what you want to happen in your life, do you see it as it has already happened?

I have a great article from John Kehoe that I encourage you to read.  It is full of great information on how our mind works with our subconscious.  It is called, “The Subconscious and Synchronicity“.

If you would like to receive some fantastic videos from Bob Proctor you can check them out by clicking here.

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